The Ogre, Doug Scott
The Ogre, Doug Scott
List: $9.99 | Sale: $7.00
Club: $4.99

The Ogre
Biography of a mountain and the dramatic story of the first ascent

Author: Doug Scott

Narrator: Saethon Williams

Unabridged: 4 hr 39 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 12/11/2018


Synopsis

'One of the greatest mountaineering survival stories never told.' – The Sunday Times
Some mountains are high; some mountains are hard. Few are both.

On the afternoon of 13 July 1977, having become the first climbers to reach the summit of the Ogre, Doug Scott and Chris Bonington began their long descent. In the minutes that followed, any feeling of success from their achievement would be overwhelmed by the start of a desperate fight for survival. And things would only get worse.

Rising to over 7,000 meters in the center of the Karakoram, the Ogre – Baintha Brakk – is notorious in mountaineering circles as one of the most difficult mountains to climb. First summited by Scott and Bonington in 1977 – on expedition with Paul ‘Tut’ Braithwaite, Nick Estcourt, Clive Rowland and Mo Anthoine – it waited almost twenty-four years for a second ascent, and a further eleven years for a third.

The Ogre, by legendary mountaineer Doug Scott, is a two-part biography of this enigmatic peak: in the first part, Scott has painstakingly researched the geography and history of the mountain; part two is the long overdue and very personal account of his and Bonington’s first ascent and their dramatic week-long descent on which Scott suffered two broken legs and Bonington smashed ribs. Using newly discovered diaries, letters, and audiotapes, it tells of the heroic and selfless roles played by Clive Rowland and Mo Anthoine. When the desperate climbers finally made it back to base camp, they were to find it abandoned – and themselves still a long way from safety.

The Ogre is undoubtedly one of the greatest adventure stories of all time.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Steve on March 25, 2018

Knew the story well, but wanted to read this because I had just seen his lecture on it at RGS, and it promised some new material that had been found, and a history of the mountain itself. The description of the accident and the descent was excellent, but I found the buildup about the mountain and ea......more

Goodreads review by Lisa on March 17, 2020

When I read this book we all lived in a different world – one where deciding to climb a dangerous mountain was more life-threatening than leaving your own house. Strange times we live in, folks… Anyhoo – the book. The Ogre is an account of one the people who did indeed try to climb the titular mounta......more

Goodreads review by Eme on February 20, 2021

A book on human resilience and spiritual fortitude. You don't have to a climber, mountaineer or alpinist to find valuable life lessons in Doug Scott's tale of perseverance, strength and a burning desire to live.......more

Goodreads review by Alex on August 20, 2021

A well produced book with loads of pictures to accompany the writing on the culture and history of the region and its exploration. The story of Doug Scott's survival on the mountain is one of the great epics of mountaineering history.......more

Goodreads review by Cat on March 26, 2018

Wow, I’m surprised by how taken in I was by this book and how much I enjoyed reading it. Located in the Karakoram mountain range is the Ogre, a notoriously difficult mountain to climb. Nobody managed to reach the summit until Doug Scott and his climbing partner Chris Bonnington in 1977, however the......more